RN Dredging Pty Ltd, the Australian subsidiary of Rohde Nielsen A/S, has been awarded the dredging and construction contract for the $127 million Cairns Shipping Development Project.
Under the agreement, the company will work alongside Hall Contracting, the largest Queensland-based dredging company, on this project, the State Government announced.
Member for Cairns, Michael Healy, said that the latest announcement marked an important milestone for the project which is expected to deliver an $850 million boost for the region’s economy and thousands of jobs for locals.
“This is a great result for locals, with the project to generate 800 jobs during construction and close to 2,700 direct and indirect jobs by 2031, ” Mr Healy said.
Speaker of the Queensland Parliament and Member for Mulgrave, Curtis Pitt, added that the tender would enable dredging of up to one million cubic meters of sediment from the port’s existing navigation channel and placing the material on two land sites.
According to Ports North Chairman, Russell Beer, the selection of a dredging contractor was based on assessing their experience, methods, equipment and capability to meet strict environmental requirements and timeframes.
The Queensland Government said that the dredging operations are expected occur over a 12-week period during the 2019 dry season, weather permitting.